Montgomery arrested for fraud

Montgomery arrested for fraud

Tweet

Print Share

 

Also In The News

Allardyce still waiting

Sam Allardyce insists he is still in the running for the England and will remain so until the FA informs him otherwise.

• Call for drug whistleblowers
• Botham: Give Freddie holiday
• Henry named writers' player

 

Friday, 28, Apr 2006 09:19

Former 100-metre world record holder Tim Montgomery has been arrested in connection with a $5 million bank fraud and money laundering scheme, prosecutors say.

Montgomery and 13 others, including his coach, former Olympic champion Steven Riddick, were charged with participating in a conspiracy to defraud banks by depositing stolen, altered and counterfeit checks and then laundering the proceeds through various accounts.

The indictment filed in U.S. federal court in Manhattan charges that the ring stole, altered or counterfeited at least 20 cheques that came to over $5 million.

Montgomery caused at least three fraudulently obtained cheques totaling $775,000 to be deposited into accounts associated with him, according to the indictment announced by US Attorney Michael Garcia.

Riddick, who also coaches former champion women's sprinter Marion Jones, caused at least three cheques totaling $905,000 to be deposited into his accounts, the indictment said.

Montgomery has been fighting a two-year doping ban imposed on him in December by Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on the basis of statements from American sprinter Kelli White.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency also gave evidence that he had taken banned substances provided by Balco, a Californian laboratory.

The CAS ruling annulled all of Montgomery's results since March 31, 2001, including his 2002 100 meters world record of 9.78 seconds.

After retiring in December, the sprinter refuses to return prize money being demanded by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in the wake of the doping ban.

Montgomery was part of the winning 4x100 meters U.S. relay team at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

In 2002, he had been credited with setting a world record of 9.78 seconds in the 100 meters on September 14 at the IAAF Grand Prix final in Paris.